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By Samuel Lam

Last night during the Bridge life group meeting, we talked about Proverbs 1. The Bridge is a group for people anyone out of high school all the way through their 20s. I fit in that group. The group has been a great fit for me since I am not from the area and it’s hard for me to connect with people my age since I spend most of my week working.

But back to our discussion last night. There was a part of the chapter that really stood out to me while we went over it. Check out verse 4 (NIV).

1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

2 for gaining wisdom and instruction;
for understanding words of insight;
3 for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
doing what is right and just and fair;
4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young—
5 let the wise listen and add to their learning,
and let the discerning get guidance—
6 for understanding proverbs and parables,
the sayings and riddles of the wise.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

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Pastor Johnny wonders about technology and social media: Do we take a step back and not get so caught up in it? Or do we embrace the many connections we have in it? The Bible gives us an approach that is neither, but so enriching to our lives.

Ironically enough, there is a new YouTube viral video decrying technology (particularly mobile devices), by Gary Turk. It’s called “Look Up.” He speaks with conviction and depth; he really believes what he’s saying, and he makes some great points. His purpose is simple: don’t be so caught up with your technology that you miss the meaningful moments in life.

Click the photo to watch the video.

Of course, there had to be response videos and blog posts. I was disappointed, but not surprised in the least, that most of them were crude or mean. One blog response basically boiled down to, “Just do whatever you want. It’s your life and it’s your choice.” Not very helpful and pretty self-centered.

Probably the best and most thoughtful one was the aptly but unoriginally named “Look Down.” This video blogger’s counterpoint was that our technology actually allows us to make meaningful connections and…

Confusion. Wickedness. Violence. Death. New Life. All the things you would expect from any film realistically based on anything that happens in this world. But there are few stories that describe the human condition and its consequences quite like those in the Bible. Lies. Rape. Murder. The very vilest acts conceivable. And redemption more beautiful than you would think possible.

It is to that world, primitive though not totally unlike our world today, that we are introduced in “Noah,” the big-budget film starring Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Emma Watson, and Sir Anthony Hopkins. And without going into too much analysis, or dropping spoilers (in case you don’t already know the ending), I just want to express what I took away from the movie. For someone who has read and heard stories from the Bible since my earliest memories, it gave me a fresh look at a story I have encountered…

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Then the King will say to those on His right, “Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.”

Then the righteous will answer Him, “Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?”

The King will answer and say to them, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.”

In this social experiment, unsuspecting people walked by relatives pretending to be homeless. Would they notice their family members? Or have the homeless become invisible? Watch how each person reacts after the big reveal in the video below.

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By Samuel Lam

Today is Good Friday and we remember the death of Jesus Christ. But also, it’s a celebration because it is Jesus fulfilling His promise to give us eternal life. It’s a good day. That’s why we call it Good Friday.

One of my favorite parts of the Good Friday story actually is Jesus’ conversation with two criminals that hung with Him on the cross. It’s a simple story, but a powerful one that still sticks with me to this day.

While onlookers hurled insults at Jesus, mocking Him for proclaiming to be the Messiah, one of the criminals spoke to Jesus.

One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

I lead worship at two churches. One is Trinity’s house church, the Fellowship. The last time I lead there my set included: “Give Me Jesus,” “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” “One Thing Remains,” and Hillsong’s “Hosanna.” Each of these songs is filled with Christian imagery and theology, full of faith and hope in God, adoration and joy in Him. I chose these songs, carefully and lovingly. And I played them with all my heart.

Comfortable with a guitar and able to project my singing voice (even if amelodically), I like knowing that people like it when I lead music, however flawed. And that sometimes, someone actually enters into a true space of worship: meeting God, connecting to Him, praying, thanking and supplicating. I am amazed by this, and can only credit something far larger than myself as the catalyst.

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This is part 4 of 5, of Sam Lam’s reblog series on how the church deals with outsiders. Here, Sam reflects on the value of leading with Jesus, instead of leading with sin. He states, “We’re supposed to rebuke our brothers and sisters who sin. I know that. But we can never reach that point until we welcome those people to Christ. Only then do our words about sin hold value. The more valuable message we should be telling first is about Jesus and salvation. That’s the love we are supposed to give.”

That’s it. I’m done with it. I’m sick and tired of telling people that what they’re doing is a sin. It means nothing.

(Actually, that’s not really true. But you’ll get my point as you continue to read.)

But as the world keeps changing and my fascination with human behavior continues to grow, I start to notice how the Christian faith somehow connects with the world. But actually in many, how it fails to communicate with the world.

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This is part 3 of a 5 part reblog series taken from Samuel Lam’s “Write a Blog on a Log” dealing with questions of faith and fear, inclusion and exclusion. Sam has an unusually nuanced and fair approach to issues like homosexuality, bullies, salvation, and fundamentalism. This third post reminds us that, if we speak even in the tongues of heaven but do not have love, we are nothing more than noisy gongs and clanging cymbals.

There’s an irony when it comes to the same-sex marriage deal among Christians who oppose it because the Bible says marriage should be between a man and a woman. My bigger issues is that that is not the big issue. The biggest issue I see is that there is no love.

The most important thing Jesus told us is to love God and love God’s people. God’s people is everybody. This is the priority.

Yet I see people who are against same-sex marriages condemning those who see it differently, throwing Scriptures all around and claiming that their view is right and everyone else is wrong.

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